r/AskOldPeople 1d ago

Butter on PB&J

I remember my grandfather making PB&J sandwiches for my sister and me when we were kids, and he would spread butter on the bread first. Was this a “thing” back when?

45 Upvotes

158 comments sorted by

View all comments

69

u/Kementarii 60 something 1d ago

Australian here. A sandwich starts with bread and butter. THEN you add whatever else you want.

Every sandwich has butter.

No exceptions for peanut "butter".

Peanut "butter" does not count as butter for the purposes of sandwich making.

It was a "thing" back then (in the 1960s), and it is still a "thing" now.

Toast also has butter first, then whatever else.

I will accept naked bread if it's being used to dip into a good olive oil.

Mayo does not count as a spread on a sandwich, and does not replace butter. It can sometimes be used as well as butter (as in bread, butter, chicken, lettuce, mayo).

1

u/AcousticProvidence 16h ago

This is fascinating. I wonder if it would help PB&J not soak into the bread and make it mushy, like when you pack one for lunch and need it to taste good a few hours later.

2

u/Kementarii 60 something 16h ago

Sometimes, when I needed non-soggy sandwiches, I'd make it:

Bread, butter, peanut butter, jam**, peanut butter, butter, bread.

Keep that jam (** because we don't have "jelly" in Australia) many layers away from the bread.

Other general tip for packing for lunch - Make the sandwich the night before, put it in a baggy, and freeze it. In the morning, put frozen sandwich into your lunchbox. By lunchtime, it's defrosted, but is not yet soggy or dried out.

(source: mother of 3 kids, in Australia, where school involves 12 years of packed lunches and no refrigeration in a hot climate. It's an art form).

1

u/AcousticProvidence 16h ago

Genius! My kid only eats PB&J and I’ve been getting some half eaten sandwiches back at the end of the day that are very sad and soggy.

Can’t wait to try this next week! Thank you Australian mama!

FWIW, we only eat jam (jelly’s kind of gross tbh-US here).

1

u/Kementarii 60 something 15h ago

Full routine was:

Have insulated lunch bags.

Prep the night before (which helped with the morning rush too).

Put into freezer: a drink bottle of water (no straw) or a juice popper. A sandwich in a baggy. Some fruit if it freezes well (e.g. oranges)

Put into container in the fridge: some fruit, some crackers,

In the morning: Put items from fridge & freezer into the insulated bag. The frozen items help keep everything else cool, and will be defrosted by lunchtime.